Noah’s big biblical boat being built as Kentucky attraction

WILLIAMSTOWN, Ky. (AP) — A rolling Kentucky pasture is sprouting the giant ribs of a massive wooden ship — a tourist-friendly version of Noah’s ark.

For now, there’s only a foundation, some concrete pillars and a few ribs. The builder, a Christian ministry called Answers in Genesis, says it will be 510 feet long when it’s finished next summer.

Journalists were allowed to tour the site for the first time Thursday — following a hard rainfall, as it turned out. In the Bible account, the large vessel withstood an epic flood.

The ministry plans to pour nearly $90 million into its Ark Encounter attraction.

The project has attracted controversy. TV "Science Guy" Bill Nye says it will hurt science education, and Kentucky last year withdrew a tourism incentive worth millions for the ark.

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